#not that Dean's moral compass is GOOD it's just better than Cas’s

[kerryweaverlesbian]

Is Castiel??? Threatening to kill a child?? To avoid giving up an item they didn't even know they had and have no pressing use for???

It might be an adult, the picture it's very small but even still jesus christ??? Just give him the skeleton key it's fine. Cas goes off the rails so quickly when Dean isn't ethically regulating him lmao.

[angelsdean]

thinking abt this ask some more and well, it also all boils down to dean is not john because dean is not john.

dean is his own person with different life experiences and trauma and morals and agency. yes dean learned and internalized some things from john but dean literally IS NOT john. he's dean. and crucially he is a victim of john, who was Thee angry man in the house.

john is the first person he learned pain and shame and anger and self-hatred from. and dean has not been able to properly unpack or cope with those early experiences or any of the other traumatic events that follow. for nearly 40 years. PLUS 40 years of hell trauma. and still !! still !! dean tries to do better. he apologizes and he expresses his regret for past actions and even his worst actions are rooted in love and a need to protect. he most often acts out of fear, worry, and/or grief. as cas said, the good and the bad, everything he has done has been for love. he fears jack and is angry at jack during widowers arc because he loved cas so much and does not yet know jack is good and can be trusted. his reaction is understandable. we as the audience see and receive more information than the characters. but based on what dean himself knows at the time, dean has every right to be fearful and wary.

but anyways. back to dean and john. widower's arc IS meant to draw that parallel between them. we're supposed to see dean echoing john. we're supposed to feel john's ghost acting through dean. but we are also meant to see where they diverge. dean does not become obsessed with revenge. he does not go on a quest to get cas back (despite how much he wants him back) and abandon everyone else. he even starts to come around to jack, even before cas gets back.

then, there's john and his own complicated trauma. and i do feel some empathy and sadness for him. but his trauma is notably different from dean's, and that's why dean garners more of my empathy, compassion, and forgiveness.

john felt abandoned after his father's disappearance and then internalizes those abandonment issues and those unresolved feelings fester into anger. then john enlists illegally in the military chasing his father's ghost. in the military he experiences more trauma. but he did choose to go into the military. it's different from dean being forced to be a soldier and weapon for his father from a young age. john was 17 ? when he enlisted and did so of his own free will (as much free will as you can have being one of chuck's blorbos but still, you get what i'm saying), while dean never had a choice, and by the time he had the choice to leave he'd already been guilt tripped into staying by john and also had very few connections outside of the winchester family unit. IF dean were to leave john (after sam left) he'd be largely alone because john never let them forge connections and relationships. john purposely kept them isolated from others. finally, john loses mary which exacerbates his preexisting issues, anger, and trauma. losing mary was not the catalyst that turned john "bad" it was just an accelerator added to the fire that had been slow-burning for years.

so yes, both john and dean have abandonment issues regarding their fathers, except john's are based on a perceived abandonment that he lets become a deep anger and propel his actions re: joining the military. whereas dean is literally abandoned and neglected repeatedly and often throughout his childhood which leads to a lot of unresolved fear and anxiety regarding losing people and people leaving him. cas dying during widower's arc and losing mary at the same time too (and crowley!) definitely triggers those deep seated fears and anxieties. dean also just has trauma surrounding death bc of mary. dean, like john, also has trauma surrounding being a soldier and having to kill people. however, john chose that path (and then later chose hunting) while dean had that life thrust upon him. (the first time he's handed a gun he is six years old and his father believes he somehow has a "killer instinct").

finally, dean, like john, loses cas who is yes mary-coded during widower's arc and he is left with a child. however, unlike john, this child is also an extremely powerful being whom dean knows nothing about except the fact that he is the biological son of lucifer. he also believes jack manipulated cas and got him killed. people will parallel jack to sam in this instance but john likely had no idea sam was infected with demon blood until much later after years of research and following azazel's trail. so early on, john's neglect and mistreatment of sam and dean cannot be blamed on john being afraid of sam or something like that. john IS afraid of the world though. he's paranoid as all heck and that fuels a lot of his actions. but dean is not wrong in this case for being wary of jack. he has every right to be afraid, it's just that his fear, coupled with grief, ends up being expressed as anger. the same may be true for john in those early years, but eventually, john lets his anger and need for vengeance consume him and he prioritizes the hunt over his children. as he says in 1x22, "killing this demon comes first. before everything." dean wants cas and mary and crowley back, but he doesn't put it before everything. he doesn't turn away from sam or jack to pursue that quest. in fact, it is sam who becomes obsessed during this arc with the quest of getting mary back to the point of using jack and training him specifically for that purpose.

dean is not john because dean is dean. he doesn't see the world as black and white as john did. he still has fears and trauma that when triggered often come out as anger. but anger is not his norm, it is a trauma response. most often, he wants to do good and help people. he cares about his family and wants them to be safe and alive. his fears may inform some of his actions and decisions, but his actions are always rooted in love and care. cas saw him as a being of love. as more than what john tried to make him. more than a blunt instrument. more than a weapon for heaven and hell. more than chuck's favorite toy. dean is dean. and that's why cas loves him. and that's why *i* love him.

[supernatural-blogss]

3rd blog !! yay !!!!!!

For this blog I was a bit torn on what season to write about, mostly because I hold the entirety of the show close to my heart. I even rewatched a few random episodes from the show to see if that season’s plot stood out to me more than the others. With much deliberation, I landed on a season to talk about! So, without further ado, welcome to my blog about.

Season 6 of Supernatural !!

For a general recap of season 6, we have Dean and Sam as our main characters. We don’t see much of Castiel this season, since he was mainly a temporary character and the show writers were trying to find effective ways to write his character out the show (no attempts worked though— episodes with Cas’s character just had higher numbers of viewers).

It’s hard to talk about this season with no spoilers, so expect at least two major ones to be spoiled in this general season recap! If you just wanna know my favorite character for the season, feel free to scroll.

This season is post season 5, where the show was originally supposed to meet its end. However, it was renewed for another season, and this is where Supernatural begins to scramble to pick up any semblance of plot they can. Unlike some of the other seasons, I feel like this season does a good job of creating direction in a world where all the characters problem should be solved post the end of the last season.

Sam is alive, and so is Cas, though Dean thought them both to be dead. Dean wrestles with feelings of abandonment and betrayal when he finds this harsh reality to be completely untrue. Cas is alive, trying to guide heaven in any way he can. And Sam? Well, he’s different in a way Dean can’t exactly put his hands on.

This season also introduces a new concept that becomes crucial to a variety of seasons— the idea of a soul. The soul is never defined in supernatural, but it seems to be a key component of making up a human’s moral compass, and it is also a very strong source of magical energy.

Sam, after having being pulled out of Lucifer’s grasp, has lost his soul. With no idea what’s wrong with him and no intention of fixing himself, we are in for the ride as we watch Sam make morally questionable decisions!

My favorite character for this season has to be …

Sam Winchester!!!!!!

When writing this blog I had to decide whether I should give each of our favorite boys a chance to shine, or if I should just gush about Dean Winchester one final time. After some thought, I felt bad for Sam (he was never close to being my favorite), so I let him have this one! Soulless Sam is sassy, snarky, quick-witted, determined, and straight rude! His lack of empathy and emotion is something I really enjoyed. The lack of these things completely detaches Sam from the person he is with his soul, and I found him thoroughly more enjoyable to watch. In fact, I wish they never gave him back his soul. It was refreshing to think “Dean’s overreacting right now” instead of “Sam’s being overly emotional” for once. Also, soulless Sam was genuinely the best hunter known to man. He was an even better a hunter than The Dean Winchester, I fear. This season was also the official star Sam’s long luscious shoulder length hair journey. Sometimes, when I rewatch the earlier seasons, it’s strange to see him with such short hair!

My Favorite Scene From Season 6:

This is the episode where we find out something’s wrong with Sam! It’s also one of the first times where we see where the brothers turn on each other.

and that’s the blog!

I hope you all enjoyed it !! If you have any comments or questions, feel free to ask them in them ! Also, I would like opinions on the four horsemen ! I’ve gotten mixed opinions about them as a concept, but i genuinely enjoyed death returning as a character in season 6. In fact, he probably would have been my top pick for favorite character if he played a more prevalent role in season 6 !

Well, until next time! toodaloo!

[wellofdean]

Tags from @shallowseeker: #ohhh is this why there's so many reblogs and asks? eeee#yes to above but then#i feel like you and i have discussed so much of the juicy parts of this already!!!!#and i think i answered this earlier or yesterday in an ask#but but chuck coming exploding into the bunker at the very end of 15x17 he is shrieking YOU DID IT AGAIN#but what did they do again?#in the 15x17 scene it's SAM who is having grace for dean giving him support even though he doesn't *deserve* it in the moment#and i think that's the thing that chuck can't predict the most#that tendency to borrow support and lend support to another family member when they're at their lowest#sorry to sam-post on your rb but it IS related!#i swear

Firstly, let me just say first, that peer review from three such esteemed fellow travellers as @ironworked, @ilarual and @shallowseeker is such an honor. Thank you all!

@ironworked -> this scene/ep is not meant to be The Thing That Fixes Them, it's them saying they're going to try again. YESSSS. Exactly.

and, @shallowseeker, please don't apologise for putting some Sam in my notes! I know I have terrible Sam-blindness, and I want to be able to see him better. Also, I think you are absolutely right, and that this is, in fact one of the central theses of Supernatural. True, real LOVE and GRACE are what's real, and they are exactly the thing that Chuck can never control and never predict.

Supernatural has such an interesting and beautiful theory of what love and goodness are made of, and I think it's central to what I love most about the show. Cas and Dean are bound by love, and whatever mistakes they make in loving each other, that's the foundation of it -- whatever they have done, they have done for love. They know that about each other. Sam and Dean are the same: bound together by a familial love that is part bondage and part of their souls. They don't always understand each other's exigencies, or know how to love each other the way the other one needs, but they want to, and that's what matters to them. Jack's choice is a choice between power and love, and with Sam, Dean and Cas as his guardians, he receives a clear model of love and goodness, even if they are flawed, damaged and capable of grave error, because they repeatedly CHOOSE love. Jack sees this and becomes this, so why are we talking about who the worst parent it? All three of them are important to what Jack learns and who he becomes, and they did their best.

It's so crunchy and delicious of Supernatural to posit that choices made in love can be fucking wrong, but that the freedom to make choices is the ultimate good. Mmm. Yum. Complexity. Moral grey areas! Supernatural!

Which is why I don't quite understand why it seems so important to fandom to apportion blame in their conflicts. They love each other, and their souls are bound together in Chuck's narrative, and they keep foiling him with love and devotion to each other, and with the way they always choose grace. They all stand in need of compassion, and they all need to learn to have some compassion for themselves, and to learn to give themselves grace.

Everyone in TFW has moments of deep, catastrophic, unforgivable wrong, but they love each other so truly, and they all give each other grace, and that's how they survive, and it's how they defeat their cruel and capricious god. For me, that story is much more compelling than any discussion of who is more wrong or more right, who should apologise and what anyone deserves. Love is not about what we can have or what we deserve, it just is. It is the most remarkable event.

I've been reading lots of commentary on my dash about Dean's apology to Cas in The Trap that is, in a sense, re-litigating who is most to blame for their rupture, and who should be apologising.

On the one side, Cas, whose drive to protect and save the ones he loves leads him to go it alone and keep vital information from them, and on the other, Dean, whose anger, however justified, makes him cold, hard and uncompromising. Cas, who left, or Dean, who didn't ask him to stay. And, I think: can't they both be in error and standing in need of compassion? Is love a thing to be earned and deserved, or is it like grace, which is free and unmerited and complete forgiveness?

For me, these are two characters who are under tremendous pressure and in repeated dire circumstances, and who have given each other that kind of grace over and over and over again for years, and who have chosen each other every time a choice was there to be made. In the The Rupture, Dean is too angry to make talking about it viable (and I am not blaming him, he has his perfectly valid reasons! But, that's a fact) and Cas is too offended, hurt, and too proud to stay and bear Dean's anger, so he leaves.

A few episodes later, in Golden Time, Cas is told Chuck is back and is reminded of what they are fighting for, and who they are fighting against, and realises that his place is in that fight, at their side, whatever Dean's feelings, and that he has to go back. But, the tension remains -- Dean is angry, Cas is aloof. They go to hell. Rowena says "fix it" and reminds them that they don't have time to waste on grievances, and then Michael says "Since when do we get what we deserve?" And looks them both in the eye. Then, they go to Purgatory.

What happens in The Trap, for me, is that Dean, thinking he has lost Cas, looks into his own heart knows that his anger kept them apart, and he gives Cas grace and forgivenes, because he loves Cas too much not to and it doesn't matter if Dean has a right to his anger, or what anyone deserves, because the apology is to satisfy his own soul, and his own need to be better. I don't think it matters who is right and who is wrong. I think they are both right, and they are both wrong. Cas did apologise, and Dean was too angry to let him, Cas coming back to bear that anger and help is a capitulation and an effort to do what is right.

I love that Dean forgives Cas before Cas can earn it with his 'win', and don't think it's a matter of anyone deserving anything. Dean's very nature is love and goodness, and the constant striving to act on it; his anger works against those things. There is no basis for them to talk about what ails them if he can't let it go. Dean knows it's doing him damage, and he apologises for it. His conscience demands it, and grace cannot be a thing that is owed.

I love that scene, I love that Jensen acts his heart out in that scene, and I think that scene is about Dean's heart, and not about anyone's culpability. Both of them are so broken down by their losses and have such brutal histories of trauma, and that's why they are both falling back on habits that don't serve them. Cas came back, Dean gave up his anger. Do the problems still exist? Absolutely. But nothing is served by being apart and angry.

[tearsofgrace]

endings are hard... but they aren’t impossible

tldr; the good place fucking nailed the finale, supernatural completely and utterly bombed it.

tags: wc--4.5k, gif heavy, spn meta, the good place, supernatural finale, spn wank, all gifs are mine, if you read til the end there’s a pretty gif

so i recently finished the good place (i was watching w my family and we finally had time to sit down and watch the last season) and god fucking dammit that ending is FLAWLESS. literally flawless. 

and because i’m, well, me… i spent most of the time during that hour long finale thinking about how supernatural could have had even a fraction of that and avoided so much heartbreak. 

anyways. i decided to compare them. to REALLY compare them. to get into the nitty gritty of why the fuck the good place ending left me feeling, as the finale is all about, sated and complete. and why the spn ending left me confused, lost, broken, betrayed, unable to even enjoy my comfort show at all until a dear friend finally just watched an episode (8.08) start to finish with me. 

so without further ado (always wanted to say that) here’s the good place/supernatural finale meta that no one asked for

comedy

we’ll start small. both these shows have excellent comedy. in extremely different ways… but still

in the good place finale, the comedy was perfect. whether it was jason reappearing in the forest, michael trying to get through The Door, tahani reversing the “hot bod” bit on eleanor, every comedic moment was actually pretty emotional and added something to the show. they deepened characters’ meanings, added to their relationships, and made the audience think as much as they made the audience laugh.

in the spn finale… the comedy was the pie gag. the whole sam shoving pie into dean’s face. beyond this being… like meta as hell (the whole prank thing) it doesn’t have any depth to it.

and to add salt to the wound, this “hilarious” thing happens RIGHT AFTER salmondean have a conversation about missing jack and cas that is equal parts flat and infuriating. the brothers, in particular sam about jack and dean about cas, should care more. this is their family. and family is everything to them. but, no, by all means pie dean in the face.

last lines

this one IRKS me. okay. 

the last line of the good place  "I'll say this to you, my friend, with all the love in my heart and all the wisdom of the universe: Take it sleazy.” “All right.”  is ICONIC. okay?

it’s a reference to season 1 that doesn’t feel fan-servicey. it’s kinda honestly emotional cuz it’s like a message to us, the audience. it perfectly completes michael’s arc. it captures the light-hearted vibe of the show while also somehow managing to be poignant. you can see it coming like the second before it happens but it’s also not the obvious choice. it’s just. goddamn it’s good.

the last line of supernatural…. is… “and cut.” not even said by one of j2. i mean i know it’s a meta show but COME ON ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME??????????

now i hear you shouting wait but that’s just the end of the thank you message. okay fine whatever. in that case the last lines are “Hey, Sammy.” “Dean.” (i couldn’t bring myself to gif that moment)

i’m sorry but. that’s predictable. that’s obvious. that’s boring. that’s flat. sure, it celebrates the bond between the brothers. but like… that’s not what this show is about anymore. it’s not just about sam and dean winchester it’s about what they’ve created. it’s about the world they’ve saved, the family they’ve made, about how they always keep fighting but nope we get bland, boring, coulda seen ‘em coming from miles away lines for the very end. that’s fine.

montages

the spn finale is like 50% montages that don’t make sense and are poorly done and not emotional

the good place has a montage of michael being human that brought me to tears

timing

here’s another short section. the good place finale was 53 minutes long as opposed to the usual 20 minute long runtime of every episode. granted, the fandom of the good place is very different, but STILL there was no documentary telling the fans things they ALREADY knew (there was a short special after the ep, but the episode itself was still far longer than normal). it was 53 minutes of plot. of really fucking good not rushed plot. 

the supernatural finale was… what 36 minutes long?? as opposed to the normal 40 minute runtime?? granted, we did get an hour long documentary of things we’ve all heard in cons and interviews a billion times so hey. take what you can get i guess.

character arcs

this is most of the meat of this meta. one thing we’ve all been harping on a TON is how they RUINED character arcs. soooo let’s go through and juxtapose some character arcs shall we

eleanor

eleanor shellstrop starts the show completely self-obsessed. she died getting hit by shopping carts while picking up margarita mix and let’s be real she’s a total icon. love her to death. she grows a ton, becomes one of the most selfless characters on the show, and starts to actually (jack forbid) CARE about things. it’s one of the most satisfying and relatable character arcs i’ve ever seen. 

it’s not just her selfishness either, her character is super multi-faceted and complex, and i feel like even in the end we’re getting to know her better. she’s afraid of commitment, always worried about what others’ actions will do to her, loves the trivial side of life, is queer as fuck (as acknowledged by the show in a way that’s not harmful at all but also isn’t explicitly bi/pan/unlabeled/omni etc, allowing queer fans to see their own identity in her), and is all around a HUMAN BEING. her ending at the beginning of the show was her death. her stupid, trivial, meaningless death where she was, as she puts it, all alone. and her final ending ISNT that. yes, everyone goes before her. and i think that’s purposeful. to show that she’s grown enough that being alone in some sense is okay.

but she’s never TRULY alone. and in the end. the REAL end. janet is there. the whole time. because eleanor asked her to be!! she got over her crazy need for independence and simply asked for help. and eleanor dies an amazing person that has become selfless, has found joy in philosophy while still enjoying trashy content, has fixed her relationship with her mother, and has found a sense of completion. eleanor’s life ends on her terms, and it’s beautiful.

dean

alright. now just as you’re feeling all warm and fuzzy let’s look at dean winchester’s ending. you’ve heard it a million times, so i’ll be brief. dean was raised to be a hunter, a soldier, a killing machine with no feelings and no purpose. he was raised to die scared on a hunt, his life over because of some mistake he made because he will NEVER measure up. at least that’s what john and everyone else told him with the exceptions of some of his family (and family don’t end in blood). he started to accept that he didn’t have to have this. he started to realize that he could CHOOSE what his ending was. 

the beautiful thing is, we never truly got to see what that was. i personally like to think it’s similar to the roadhouse michael locked him in while he was trapped in his own mind. a safe place for hunters, somewhere he (and cas in my opinion, but that’s not important) could settle down and still be in the life. it would be an amazing tribute to jo and ellen, and just all around a great ending. he wouldn’t have to be scared, but he wouldn’t have to conform to some apple pie facade of normalcy. and ya know what?? say that he died so he could have peace i dare you. because dean doesn’t find peace until sam is there anyway so i beg of you WHAT WAS THE FUCKING POINT. 

dean winchester died scared. dean winchester died on a hunt. dean winchester died on one of john’s old hunts. dean winchester died not directly at the hands of a monster, but at the hands of a mistake. his mistake. dean winchester died without ever working through the trauma of his best friend in the entire world confessing his love in a final act of self-sacrifice. dean winchester died in a way that leaves a sour taste in my mouth and does not at all show the audience what he’s been through and how much he’s grown. dean winchester did not die on his terms, and he deserved better.

chidi

okay back to happy. chidi anagonye. by far my personal favorite good place character (don’t tell anyone i always say jason cuz he and i are very similar). chidi in the last few episodes is SO DRASTICALLY different than the chidi we meet at the beginning. he’s decisive, confident, self-assured, and it’s amazing to see. he’s not afraid of life anymore. he’s not afraid to make the wrong decision and forever alter his reality, because he’s okay with failure. 

at the beginning, chidi was so petrified of life that… it killed him. and in the end, he’s completely at peace with every decision he makes, even the final one. yes, he considered staying for eleanor, but that just shows how his moral code and his compassion for others is still very much still intact. it shows the audience that you can be confident and decisive without being a selfish asshole. 

chidi leaves the good place knowing that it’s the right thing to do. knowing without a doubt that his time has come. the old chidi never would have been able to fathom being that sure about something. it’s beautiful. it’s a development that can give the audience peace, can show them that this drastic of change is possible, and that chidi became a better person for all of it. chidi went on his own terms, and it was beautiful.

sam

… this one might be controversial… but sam winchester. god i hated sam’s ending. at first i was kinda okay with it. like, okay fine he got his normal life. but, really, in the end that’s not what sam wanted. he started to realize that he didn’t need that apple pie, white picket fence life. he didn’t need the wife and the kids and the backyard and the barbecues because that is NOT sam’s personality and i will throw hands on that. 

that’s not to say he doesn’t want some sort of romance, maybe even kids, but not in that way. he lets himself see that he doesn’t need to be defined by his rebellion to john. doesn’t need to be defined by going to college or any of those “normal” smart kid things because it doesn’t fit him. and that’s okay! but how does sam’s story end? it ends with a wife (that isn’t even important enough to show her face). with kids. with a goddamn white picket fence. we think he’s still hunting to some extent… but it’s not the arc we were led to believe would happen. it’s not this amazing leader sam that we see in season 12-14, uniting hunters and organizing them. 

he had SO MUCH potential and they throw it away on a vanilla ending that shows only surface level pain at losing his brother. he doesn’t even invite the rest of their family to the wake for fuck’s sake. jared did an incredible job. pls don’t think i’m saying he didn’t. but that script…. sam winchester’s arc was cut short. he didn’t go on his terms, and he deserved better.

jason

jason mandoza. the only character that has ever embodied my complete dumbass energy to the insane extent that it exists. he went to hell for his impulsivity. he never thought before a decision. i aspire to be as reckless as jason while on earth. but he LEARNED. he got better, just like they all did. and by the end of the show, jason doesn’t need to be impulsive anymore. much like eleanor being left “alone,” the show does a masterful job with making him be the first one to go, capturing his old impulsiveness. but he chooses to leave. he takes his time in deliberation, waiting until a feeling of peace, of completion, of well, ‘true happiness’ (sorry cas stans, i’m right there with you) has settled over him. 

the ending of his story is one of growth, just like all these characters have been. and the best part? the show makes it comedic in the most poignant and beautiful way, because it’s jason, it had to be funny. we learn that jason has been in the woods for like, eons, just waiting to go through the door because he wants to give janet a necklace. he’s learned to simply wait. to be at peace with… nothing. his torture was being a monk, but in the end, jason embodies those ideals. his arc comes to fruition in an extremely satisfying way. jason goes on his own terms, and it’s beautiful.

castiel

this one is gonna hurt like a bitch. castiel is my comfort character. he’s my role model. he’s me in a lot of ways. i love him. so fucking much. so excuse me if this is slightly incoherent. i’m actually okay with cas’ ending… in a way. because his actual ending as an on-screen character? perfect. self-sacrifice while coming out and professing his love to dean winchester. a little bit bury the gays, but let’s be real, it’s supernatural. and “happiness is in just saying it” has to be the most powerful way to think of coming out. it takes away the fear, it takes away so much of the pain that can follow. because the joy is in just saying the words.

it’s how this was treated on the show that makes cas’ character arc terrible (and we haven’t even gotten to 15.20). YOU CANNOT JUST IGNORE A LOVE CONFESSION. that is god awful writing and i will never change my mind on that. cas deserved his family to care about him. to at least address and be sad about the fact he was gone. jesus fucking christ after everything castiel deserved at least that. and then we go to 15.20. cas is in heaven. cas is serving god. cas is right back where he started. now, i’m coming off a little strong. 

if the show had decided to show us cas and jack in heaven makin’ the world a better place… i woulda come around to it. i woulda realized that that’s not REALLY erasing 12 years of character development and cas realizing that his whole identity isn’t just him serving heaven and isn’t just him being an angel and that he’s so much more than all of that and he could still be happy as a human… because really he’s with his son. but they didn’t show us that. they barely even mentioned him. and to me. that counts as a bad character arc. and i’m sorry if you disagree. castiel may have gone on his own terms, but they treated that beautiful sacrifice with disrespect and disdain, plus resolved his arc by putting him back where he started. he deserved better.

tahani

*deep breaths guys this is a long post i’m sorry* anywayyyy tahani!!! we love tahani obviously. let’s talk about her arc, because it always kinda bothered me. throughout the show, we see all the other character’s growing and expanding their knowledge of right and wrong. and, don’t get me wrong. we see tahani grow a lot. but she makes a lot of the same types of comments and shit like that. but it’s how she treats the reactions to those comments. by the end of the show, she laughs at the caricature of herself that the others see. she isn’t looking for vindication in name-dropping, she just does it. she is far less self-absorbed, and is genuinely interested in those around her. she fixes her relationships with her sister and her parents in a way that doesn’t feel forced and actually feels like a beautiful, healthy family reunion. 

she has a list and she does everything on it. it’s worth noting, that the things on her list are not at all what they would have been at the beginning of the show. most of them are humble “labor” type tasks, and all of them are in self improvement. tahani’s end on the show is not the same as everyone else’s. she realizes that she doesn’t need to be done. that there doesn’t have to be an end to self-improvement. and she becomes an architect. the writers perfectly embody her transformation from a self-obsessed rich girl who has never done a thing for herself and laughs at the lower-class to a down-to-earth worker that simply doesn’t want the journey to end. 

it’s incredible how perfectly the writers were able to close off these character arc’s without it feeling forced, and without ignoring their character development. imagine that. tahani chooses her own way, and it’s beautiful.

jack

jack’s ending may be the only one that i’ve actually somewhat come to terms with. it’s not terrible. it’s not great. but it’s not nearly as bad. because ignoring that awful monologue about every drop of rain and shit, jack really does end up helping people. he ends up doing something that he loves and that makes the world a better place. and he doesn’t lose his personality in it. but. i dunno, that’s still his destiny, right? to create paradise. and this is a show about ripping up the rule book, about choosing free will above all else… so to have every single character just fulfill their destiny is cheap. 

still… i’ll try to be unbiased. because really at the beginning of jack’s time on the show, he’s unsure what he wants. and at least, in the end, he’s sure. he has a wisdom that he’s always had but he’s now using. and i’m good with that. but what’s NOT okay about jack’s ending is the lack of on-screen family. jack learns that family is important. sam, cas, dean those are the people he cares about. and you’re telling me he would just NEVER see them again? and be okay with that? i know he rebuilds heaven with cas, but we don’t even get a story about him rescuing cas from the empty. and he seems in 15.19 to not be that concerned about it (after the amazing emotional scene at the beginning). jack should have cared about his family. he did. but they ruined that for him. so jack kline deserved better.

michael

oh man where do i start. michael’s growth is the biggest on the show. i mean. he starts as a literal demon and ends a human. he gets better, he falls in love with humanity (*castiel fan in me sobbing again*) and he chooses over and over to be good instead of bad. his whole arc is a classic redemption arc, and every single beat just gets better. he chooses selfishly to side with humans but in the end it turns out to be the best decision he could have made. because he develops emotions, he develops compassion, he develops a moral compass. 

and his end reflects that. because to complete this arc of a demon becoming more human… he literally becomes human!!!! it fits so well. and he’s allowed to make mistakes and be happy and gain all that humanity has to offer. this just shows that human!endgame for cosmic beings that become more human WORKS SO WELL (and it shoulda happened for cas and jack that’s all i’m saying). michael went on his own terms, and it was beautiful.

eileen

oh boy… this one stings. because they brought her back, used her up, and we never saw her again. eileen was one of the best side characters on the show, and they rarely addressed her arc. she comes onto the show as a hunter seeking revenge, and gets that revenge in the same episode. her s15 arc is focused on what’s real and what’s not, with her relationship to sam admittedly being a central part of her character because… it’s supernatural and women can’t exist without that. but still! eileen grows throughout the show and in the end… we don’t even know what happens to her. it’s as if her arc wasn’t important enough to even glance at. 

it’s as if the connections the boys make outside of each other mean nothing when in reality they mean everything. they prove that the co-dependency is behind them and that family doesn’t end with blood and that real connections can be formed between people that last a lifetime. eileen was a disabled hunter that was shown to still be one of the best in the business, and they didn’t even give her the courtesy of a goodbye. eileen didn’t go on her own terms, and she deserved better.

janet

this is gonna unbalance my list but goddammit janet’s ending was perfect. she was a not-robot, not-girl that should have been incapable of feelings. but throughout the series we get to watch as she learns first-hand about human emotions and processes them. she cares about the humans in her charge and fights for them on multiple counts. 

in the end, we see janet come to terms with both her cosmic being side, and her human side. she never stops being with the “cockroaches.” she sees them all leave, she’s there for them while they’re there, and she also continues to speak her mind and live autonomously. janet was a non-human character done right. she lived on her own terms, and it was beautiful.

some honorable mentions

spn ignored (in the finale) chuck, amara, stevie, charlie, jody, donna, garth, bess, the other angels, claire, kaia, patience, alex, and the list goes ON in favor of focusing on JUST sam and dean. did none of those characters at least deserve a quick goodbye??????

the good place wrapped up multiple arcs i had completely forgotten about in a totally natural and not forced way. mindy, doug forester, (the mushroom guy, i know, it took me a second), pillboy, donkey doug, kamilah, tahani’s parents, eleanor’s mother, eleanor’s friends, chidi’s best friend, vicki, shawn, glenn, simone and so many that i’m forgetting all got satisfying ends that they totally deserved. 

they even fucking resolved FROG GUY’S arc and gave him a real frog. that’s right. frog guy (jeff) had a better character arc resolution than dean motherfucking winchester. 

heaven and hell

obviously in very different vehicles, both shows explore in depth the realities of the afterlife. and lemme tell ya, at the end of the day, one sits a whole lot better than the other. 

the good place finale ends this quest for the perfect afterlife by saying that everyone can improve and that an eternal paradise shouldn’t keep you from eternal rest. they pretty much make me wish that this is what our afterlife looked like. they handle everything with care so it’s balanced precariously in a way that doesn’t give you anxiety looking at it but instead fills you with peace and faith in humanity. 

supernatural addresses this series long battle between heaven and hell by creating a heaven where you drive for forty years without seeing the people (cough cough cas and jack not his parents) that matter to you and drink beer that tastes like shit. a place you can’t be happy or find any sense of peace until your brother has died and he’s there too.

and hell… well they barely even address it. there’s a new queen of hell i guess? but so what. it’s still very much heaven and hell in a way that’s the worst and hey plus to them… makes me wanna stay alive thank you very much. oh and purgatory is in shambles and not functioning properly cuz all that eve bullshit.

loose ends

whenever something is ending, you gotta tie up the loose ends. not in a “oh, we must wrap everything up and leave no stone unturned” kinda way but in a “wow, we should probably try to make this unambiguous because this is the last time we will ever see these characters” kinda way. 

the good place does that. so fucking masterfully. all these side plots with all these different characters were taken care of all while focusing on the main six characters. we get to see how their intervention has changed everyone else. for example, mindy’s arc is wrapped up perfectly, with eleanor going to save her.

plus different running jokes like “take it sleazy” are wrapped up, we revisit really old callbacks like the original neighborhood, and all of it feels natural and in the moment. it feels like full circle in a way that doesn’t erase growth. 

supernatural, on the other hand, left a million loose ends open. what happened to the boys they saved? where the fuck are jody, donna, etc.? did eileen make it back? cuz sam was pretty upset about that. what happened to it “being loud” in the empty? hell, what happened to the empty? what happened to hell? what about chuck? it woulda been nice to see just for a second what became of him. did charlie and stevie make it (i’m very invested in that relationship)? if we’re taking the original ending… why the fuck is jimmy there? did kansas just all,,, die? 

i’m not saying they needed to address everything… but god a few wrapped up storylines besides the brothers wouldn’t have hurt

coloring

can i just… real quick… as a giffer lodge a complaint

the good place has beautiful vibrant coloring in the finale

spn has like bland washed out whatever the fuck that is coloring. it’s not even the dark early aesthetic cuz they dropped that it’s just… ew. so. do with that what you will. 

conclusion

first… while writing this i realized just HOW MUCH it’s not about destiel… like believe me. i knew i wasn’t just pissed about destiel. but holy shit it’s not destiel at all like did i even mention destiel that much???? this was never about a ship. this was just a trash finale. 

in the end. the good place writers knew what they were doing. they knew their fans, they knew their characters, they knew their world, and they knew how to wrap it up in a way that was satisfying and sad and perfectly fit the tone of the whole show. it wasn’t out of character or rushed, basically every loose end was tied up without the audience even realizing that’s what they were doing, and i feel happy and complete having watched it. 

the supernatural ending was a betrayal. flat out. to the audience that has stuck by it in a way bigger way than the good place fandom. to the characters that have helped so many people. to the actors that have given so much of their lives. to the other members of the crew, to certain writers… all of it was just a slap in the face.

we deserved better guys. there are better endings possible. so i’m sorry. i really am. but i guess… that’s what fanfic is for, right?

[sidecarghost]

Kripke: Family (as a source of trauma)

Sam and Dean’s brotherhood and the dichotomy of loving your brother while also disagreeing with him on almost everything at a fundamental level.

Azazel fostering a group of special children to serve in his holy war, and John raising Sam and Dean as soldiers for his holy war.

Filial piety taken to the extreme where any agency is given up. Meg’s blind faith in Azazel and then Lucifer, and Michael’s blind faith in following through with God’s plan for the end.

John Winchester’s legacy of hate and revenge being passed down to his children, Sam and Dean.

Dean, Cas, and Micheal and the consequences of absentee fathers and their sons hopelessly trying to gain approval from them.

Found family that helps emotionally support each other with team free will Sam, Dean, Bobby, and Cas vs the toxicity of the family you are born to. Similar parallel to fate vs free will.

Gamble: Identity (roles we assume vs our authentic self)

Souls as the fundamental particle that establishes our internal compass, but also capable of being lost or weaponized.

Assuming a role at the cost of being authentic:

Dean and Lisa where Dean tries to be a better father to Ben than John was to him

Cas as God where Cas tries to be a better God than the father he never met

Sam as soulless where Sam tries to be a better hunter than John, Dean, or the Campbells ever had been

And Leviathan becoming better capitalists than humans (authentic chameleons that live their best life by assuming whatever form let’s them be the most effective predator)

Carver: Oppression (being a hero to some makes you a villain to everyone else & the only force strong enough to cure oppression is love or total annihilation of the oppressors)

Abuse of power at all levels: Hell, Heaven, Earth

Monsters are shown to be morally complex and an oppressed population

The MoL is a defunct organization of humans that oppressed monsters.

Sam and Dean as the inheritors of the MoL legacy of oppression. They are never redeemed and carry on killing monsters until the end of the series.

Cain saves his brother Abel from damnation, but the cost doomed millions. His only escape was conquering the mark because of the love of one woman.

Naomi overriding the free will of angels by reprogramming them to keep them kowtowed to her agenda for heaven. Cas is able to conquer Naomi’s reprogramming because of the love of one man.

Metatron ejects the angels of Heaven forcing them to live among the people heaven has oppressed in the name of God. The show frames Metatron as a hero and a villain because good and evil can be subjective.

Rowena as the narcissistic mother that sees Crowley as a failure because of her own failings, and attempts to emotionally manipulate and influence his role as king of hell. Eventually Rowena is redeemed by developing genuine love for her son and team free will.

Styne family as a dynasty of white supremacists trying to make a race of superior humans. Their reign of oppression ends with their annihilation by Dean.

Sam clings to faith and hope in a righteous God even though he has suffered his whole life. Sam’s relationship to faith is never resolved through the end of the series.

Light oppressing the Darkness. God’s only sister was kept entombed by her only brother. Love for each other was the only force strong enough to stop their suffering.

Dabb: Fuck if I know???? (Cw: racism, suicide ideation, rape, incest) Dabb era is the most racist era of a very racist show. Other eras were problematic, but at least they attempted to tell a story based on an interesting theme. I cannot, for the life of me, come up with a theme for Dabb that the season wide plots feed into (calling it plot is a misnomer because there really is none in s12-s15, that shit cannot be consumed serially).

Destiel is shamelessly queerbaited, because Dabb has found that the queer and queer ally portion of fandom responds favorably to these crumbs.

BMoL as oppressive but now also British, and a new bunch of white people are added to the cast, because in the Spn universe Britain is solely populated by white people.

Lucifer keeps appearing to antagonize the protagonists, even though his relevance as a legitimate antagonist ended 7+ seasons ago.

Lucifer rapes a woman by posing as her lover. This results in the birth of the Messiah and death of the woman. No one ever seeks justice for Kelly, instead they endlessly obsess over her fetus.

The actor cast as Jack, the Messiah, is yet another white person in a cast full of white people.

Alternate universes are found that are like the main universe but way more boring.

Crowley is killed because Dabb is out of ideas for the character.

Sam and Dean are only interested in finding a way back to the apocalypse universe because their mom got stuck there. They express no desire to find a way back to help the universe where humans are being exterminated. They have completely given up on altruism and are living it up as privileged white people in their bunker mansion.

Black archangel Michael is villainized and loses any of the moral complexity that white archangel Michael exhibits.

Kevin Tran (one of the few recurring PoC), reappears in the Apocalypse universe just to blow himself up as a suicide bomber.

Archangel Gabriel was being kept imprisoned by Colonel Sanders who moonlights as a prince of hell. Does any of this mini arc impact the overall narrative? No. Just more white men added to the story because Dabb can’t figure out where to take the franchise.

Mary Winchester is fridged, yet again, by another yellow eyed supernatural being, so a singular family member can go into a vindictive rage about it.

Canon bisexual God is villainized. I would say for plot reasons, but I have yet to discover anything in s15 resembling a plot.

Main universe Kevin Tran (who sacrificed everything to devote his short life to helping Sam and Dean) reveals that God sent him to Hell all those years ago. Kevin is then doomed to wander Earth as a ghost until he goes insane. At which point, white guy Sam is probably going to kill him sending him back to suffer for eternity in Hell.

Billie, a black woman, becomes Death, a primordial entity and a stronger force than God (will reap God in the end). She is villainized and killed by white men for being committed to keeping the universe in balance and adhering to the natural order. No one seeks justice for her.

W*ncest is shamelessly baited because Dabb has found the portion of fandom that prefers bros as soulmates responds favorably to these crumbs.

Romanticizing suicide in a meta attempt to inform viewers that this show has lived past its useful shelf life and keeping it alive is a punishment to be endured.

Spn Prequel: ??? Not to jinx the prequel but at least it should not be worse than Dabb era.

[inthiswhisper]

dean: i don’t think it's a good idea. ... let’s just not barrel through with that ... like the donatello thing.

cas: we had our disagreement, but we got results.

dean: that don’t make it okay.

cas: i hear your concerns, and yes, the angels loathe me, and there’s going to be dangers, but heaven doesn’t want the world to end any more than we do. this is something that i have to try.

-

dean: i knew it. i freaking knew it, man. you gave [rowena] that page. what'd you think was gonna happen, huh?

sam: she wanted to protect herself. we don’t know what this is yet. maybe she had a reason to—

dean: doesn’t matter what the reason is. [rowena killing someone is] not okay.

sam: okay. i said if rowena goes bad again, i’d deal with it, so i’ll deal with it.

dean: you better. (then) cas, you wanna try this angel thing, then go for it. just don’t get dead again.

—

a clear indication of how dean is making himself sam and cas’ moral compass, being a father to his brother and an angel’s lens through which to study humanity. i knew rowena would come back to bite, so i can’t wait to see how sam will (or won’t) deal with it. and cas’ circumstance is him being desperate and determined again, which is increasingly worrying. of course dean’s main concern is to not lose his best friend to the cause or death, or both. i don’t always agree with dean, but i also don’t blame him for feeling the need to control decisions. circumstances being out of his control always send him diving into the deep end of his own mental state.

[scoobydoodean]

Kind of wondering if we accidentally started the slice girls posting going on rn lol.

I don't want to argue about it either—I definitely think we wouldn't agree about a lot of things, and that's totally fine. I chose to add to your tags not to directly come after you but because I just wanted to make it clear that this isn't a post about me trying to make Sam sound "worse" than Dean because Emma was his niece. I could have called Kaia by her name too to try and diminish the impact of Dean's actions in pointing a gun at her, but I didn't—I emphasized her age instead. If it feels like it's unfair to focus on certain details, that's good, because nothing about the original post is nuanced in how its details are presented or gets into the "why", which is how crits like things, because details and circumstances and feelings present opportunities for understanding and even compassion (which is what you are doing—showing Sam compassion—when you focus on how you feel Emma should be titled).

At the same time, I don't think Emma's blood relation is irrelevant to how Sam views his own actions. It is irrelevant to me in the sense of being morally grey no matter the blood relation, but that doesn't mean there's no dynamic related to Emma's blood status. If Emma's blood status was irrelevant to Sam, he wouldn't have said, "Look, man, she was not yours. Not really" to try and diminish the weight of whatever hangups he clearly must have about killing a blood relation.

When you wrote, "i also think it's weird to position his killing of emma as worse than his killing of any other monster." You're confused because you're focusing too hard on the blood relation. Killing Emma is not more morally grey than a a run-of-the-mill Sam monster kill simply because she's his niece. It's more morally grey than a run of the mill Sam monster kill because

Her kill stat stands at a solid zero. She's not yet hurt anyone.

She's just a few days old

She's been brainwashed

She is being held at gunpoint and brought a knife to a gunfight, thus is not quite so active a threat to Dean's life in that exact moment as some fans frequently like to rewrite history to argue.

That said, just because it was mentioned—and I'm sure we'll agree to disagree—I do disagree with you on Emma in fandom. I think that the portions of fandom who do so are correct to point out the potential of this storyline and how the show swept it under the rug, especially when the same season featured three episodes focusing on the weight of Dean killing Sam's friend (and again—I could call her "Amy" instead of "Sam's friend", to try and reduce the impact of Dean's actions and present her as more of a stranger to Dean and Sam, but I think the fact that she was a stranger to Dean and Sam hadn't spoken to her in years is the complete wrong thing to focus on in building a defense of Dean's actions and doesn't make him look better).

Additionally, while I agree Sam did reject Emma as his niece, I have a very different take on Dean, and within the text, Dean did not reject Emma as his daughter. He did the exact opposite in that conversation in the car, saying that yes she absolutely was his daughter. Dean dropped the subject afterwards, just like he's dropped countless traumatic things and completely refuses to discuss them ever again, such as Lisa and Ben, or hell.

Dean being the most popular character, which I absolutely agree with—is a different observation from what I'm getting at at the end (which is probably my fault for wording), which is that Dean's negative actions, no matter how similar to Sam's and Cas's, are more likely to be focused on within fandom and also by the show itself in many cases (in terms of the applied screentime and how other characters frame his actions). I had another addition somewhere in the notes about that point specifically so I won't expound on it again here.

"Dean pulled a gun on a teenage girl."

Sam shot and killed his niece and Cas shoved his entire arm into a 12 year old boy's chest while he screamed and cried so he could feel his soul and would have murdered Jesse the antichrist if he hadn't been turned into a figurine what is your point.

[autisticandroids]

idk what the business hours are for evil deancas are but if you or your followers have any more headcannons for cas protecting jack at all costs from dean's bullshit but also cas himself engaging w dean's bullshit i would love to read them

you see, this is NOT evil deancas because healthy castiel who can do things like “care about things that aren’t dean” and “say no to dean” and “acknowledge dean as anything but simultaneously the embodiment of perfection and an object to be coveted” is antithetical to evil deancas. this is why, post-jack, there is no longer any such thing as evil deancas. there is instead working-on-ourselves deancas. they really gave cas a baby and it fixed all his problems.

but anyway i did make this dumb post immediately in the wake of 15x18 and it still, imo, holds up. like the thing about jack is that he isn’t dean’s son. he’s his stepson. he’s more sam’s family than dean’s, honestly. but in order for sam to have a good ending he needs to get out and away from dean, and jack needs to stay with cas because cas is his real dad. 

i actually think that not being around sam and spending a lot of time with cas will help dean grow just..... naturally? because the thing is that sam has given up. he gave up in like season eight. he rolled over and stopped fighting back. and it’s not like that’s his fault! like. being involved in a toxic/abusive family dynamic is, well, it’s exhausting. but i do think it encouraged dean to become worse. because dean got used to being able to absolutely control sam and 1) that’s awful for sam, primarliy, but 2) he got used to being able to do that to everyone. 

because like........ cas? before jack? cas is whipped. he’s not under dean’s thumb the way sam is, but he would never actually resist dean because he worships him. the only thing cas would really stand up to dean about is dean’s own safety. like, occasionally they disagree but to cas dean is his god and his commander. he’ll generally do whatever dean says without dean needing to control him. and he’s certainly not going to protect sam, unfortunately. he might commiserate with sam when dean is out of the room but he’s not going to help because, well, sam disobeyed dean. you don’t do that. 

like unfortunately i think cas could probably successfully step in to protect sam and improve the brothers’ dynamic, if he thought of things that way, but he doesn’t, really. like, i wish he did because it would make him a better person but unfortunately cas doesn’t really have a moral compass, exactly. like, i was joking earlier with a friend about this but for cas it really only takes a rather low threshold of inconvenience for him to think “hey. i could kill my way out of this situation.” and then do that. he doesn’t really have a strong sense of an objective, distant “right” and “wrong.” he’s all about people and loyalty. and his loyalty goes to dean first, always. until jack comes along, that is. then suddenly his first loyalty is to being a good parent. and that’s an INCREDIBLE shakeup.

the thing about cas is that he is pathologically stubborn. he’s totally capable of standing up to dean, as we’ve seen. he just doesn’t because there’s almost nothing that’s worth it to him. but jack’s happiness and emotional safety are, and so he would. combine that with dean not having sam to form bad habits with, and i think their little nuclear family could straighten out into something vaguely healthy.

anyway, in the finale fix that leo @davidfosterwallaceandgromit and i outlined, and leo is writing (with a bit of my help but only a bit), the last scene is dean and cas, five years later, in their hunter bar that they run, and jack is doing his homework in the corner, and dean says “it’s about time that boy learned to mix a drink, you know, help out with the family business,” and cas narrows his eyes and says “no. jack’s schoolwork is very important to him.” and dean throws up his hands and say “alright! alright! i’ll leave him alone!” and cas kisses him on the nose.

[killianmesmalls]

On your comments about Jack: ye-es, in the sense that Jack is a character who definitely deserved better than he was treated by the characters. The way Dean especially treats him reflects very badly on Dean, no question. But, speaking as a viewer, I think the perspective needs to shift a little bit.

To me, Jack is Dawn from Buffy, or Scrappy Doo. He’s an (in my opinion) irritating kid who is introduced out of nowhere to be both super vulnerable and super OP, and the jeopardy is centered around him in a way that has nothing to do with his actual character or relationships. He’s mostly around to be cute and to solve or create problems — he never has any firm character arcs or goals of his own, nor any deeper purpose in the meta narrative. In this way, he’s a miss for SPN, which focuses heavily on conflicts as metaphors for real life.

Mary fits so much better in that framework, and introducing her as a developed, flawed person works really well with the narrative. It is easy for us to care about Mary, both as the dead perfect mother on the pedestal and as the flawed, human woman who could not live up to her sons’ expectations. That connection is built into the core of SPN, and was developed over years, even before she was a character. When she was added, she was given depth and nuance organically, and treated as a flawed, complex character rather than as a plot device or a contrivance. She was given a voice and independence, and became a powerful metaphor for developing new understandings of our parents in adulthood, as well as an interesting and well-rounded character. You care that she’s dead, not just because Sam and Dean are sad, but for the loss of her development and the potential she offered. So, in that sense, I think a lot of people were frustrated that she died essentially fridged for a second time, and especially in service of the arc of a weaker character.

And like, you’re right, no one can figure out if Jack is a toddler or a teenager. He’s both and he’s neither, because he’s never anything consistently and his character arc is always “whatever the plot needs it to be.” Every episode is different. Is he Dean’s sunny opportunity to be a parent and make up for his dad’s shitty parenting? Yes! Is he also Dean’s worst failure and a reminder that he has done many horrible things, including to “innocent” children? Yes! Is he Cas’s child? Yes! Is he Dean’s child? Yes! But also, no! Is he Sam’s child? Yes! Is he a lonely teenager who does terrible things? Yes! Is he a totally innocent little lamb who doesn’t get why what he is doing is wrong? Yes! Is he the most powerful being in the universe? Yes! Does he need everyone to take care of him? Yes! Is he just along for the ride? Yes! Is he responsible for his actions? Kinda??? Sometimes??? What is he???

Mary as a character is narratively cohesive and fleshed-out. Jack is a mishmash of confusing whatever’s that all add up to a frustrating plot device with no consistent traits to latch on to. Everything that fans like about him (cute outfits, gender play, well-developed parental bonds with the characters) is fanon. So, yes, the narrative prioritizes Mary. Many fans prioritize Mary, at least enough that Dean’s most heinous acts barely register. To the narrative (not to Cas, which is a totally different situation), Jack is only barely more of a character than Emma Winchester, who Sam killed without uproar seasons earlier. He’s been around longer, but he’s equally not really real.

I debated on responding to this because, to tell the truth, I think we fundamentally disagree on a number of subjects and, as they say, true insanity is arguing with anyone on the internet. However, you spent a lot of time on the above and I feel it's only fair to say my thoughts, even if I don't believe it will sway you any more than what you said changed my opinions.

I'm assuming this was in response to this post regarding how Jack's accidental killing of Mary was treated so severely by the brothers, particularly Dean, because it was Mary and, had it been a random character like the security guard in 13x06, it would have been treated far differently. However, then the argument becomes less about the reaction of the Winchester brothers to this incident and more the value of Jack or Mary to the audience.

I believe we need to first admit that both characters are inherently archetypes—Mary as the Madonna character initially then, later, as a metaphor for how imperfect and truly human our parents are compared to the idol we have as children, and Jack as the overpowered child who is a Jesus allegory by the end. Both have a function within the story to serve the Winchester brothers, through whose lens and with whose biases we are meant to view the show's events. We also need to admit that the writers didn't think more than a season ahead for either character, especially since it wasn't initially supposed to be Mary that came back at the end of season 11 but John, and they only wrote enough for Jack in season 13 to gauge whether or not the audience would want him to continue on or if he needed to be killed off by the end of the season. Now, I know we curate our own experiences online which leads to us being in our own fandom echo chambers, however it is important to note that the character was immediately successful enough with the general audience that, after his first episode or two, he was basically guaranteed a longer future on the show.

I have to admit, I’m not entirely sure why the perspective of how his character is processed by some audience members versus others has any bearing on the argument that he deserved to be treated better overall by the other characters especially when taking their own previous actions in mind. I’m not going to tell you that your opinion is wrong regarding your feelings for Jack. It’s your opinion and you’re entitled to it, it harms no one to have it and express it. My feelings on Jack are clearly very different from your own, but this is really just two different people who processed a fictional person in different ways. I personally believe he has a purpose in the Winchesters’ story, including Castiel’s, as he reflects certain aspects of all of them, gives them a way to explore their own histories through a different perspective, and changes the overall dynamic of Team Free Will from “soldiers in arms” to a family (Misha’s words). In the beginning he allows Sam to work through his past as the “freak” and powerful, dangerous boy wonder destined to bring hell on earth. With Dean, his presence lets Dean work through his issues with John and asks whether he will let history repeat itself or if he’ll work to break the cycle. Regarding Cas, in my opinion he helps the angel reach his “final form” of a father, member of a family, lover and protector of humanity, rebellious son, and the true show of free will. 

From strictly the story, he has several arcs that work within themes explored in Supernatural, such as the argument of nature versus nurture, the question of what we’re willing to give up in order to protect something or someone else and how ends justify the means, and the struggle between feeling helpless and powerless versus the corruptive nature of having too much power and the dangerous lack of a moral compass. His goals are mentioned and on display throughout his stint on the show, ones that are truly relatable to some viewers: the strong desire to belong—the need for family and what you’ll do to find and keep it. 

With Mary, we first need to establish whether the two versions of her were a writing flaw due to the constant change in who was dictating her story and her relationship to the boys, which goes against the idea that her characterization was cohesive and fleshed-out but, rather, put together when needed for convenience, or if they both exist because, as stated above, we are seeing the show primarily through the biased lens of the Winchester brothers and come to face facts about the true Mary as they do. Like I said in my previous post, I don’t dislike Mary and I don’t blame her for her death (either one). However, I do have a hard time seeing her as a more nuanced, fleshed-out character than Jack. True, a lot of her problems are more adult in nature considering she has to struggle with losing her sons’ formative years and meeting them as whole adults she knows almost nothing about, all because of a choice she made before they were born. 

However, her personal struggles being more “mature” in nature (as they center primarily on parental battles) doesn’t necessarily mean her story has layers and Jack’s does not. They are entirely different but sometimes interconnected in a way that adds to both of their arcs, like Mary taking Jack on as an adoptive son which gives her the moments of parenting she lost with Sam and Dean, and Jack having Mary as a parental figure who understands and supports him gives him that sense of belonging he had just been struggling with to the point of running away while he is also given the chance to show “even monsters can do good”. 

I’d also argue that Jack being many ages at once isn’t poor writing so much as a metaphor for how, even if you’re forced to grow up fast, that doesn’t mean you’re a fully equipped adult. I don’t want to speak for anyone else, but I believe Jack simultaneously taking a lot of responsibility and constantly trying to prove to others he’s useful while having childish moments is relatable to some who were forced to play an adult role at a young age. He proves a number of times that he doesn’t need everyone to take care of him, but he also has limited life experience and, as such, will make some mistakes while he’s also being a valuable member of the group. Jack constantly exists on a fine line in multiple respects. Some may see that as a writing flaw but it is who the character was conceived to be: the balance between nature or nurture, between good and evil, between savior and devil. 

Now, I was also frustrated Mary was “fridged” for a second time. It really provided no other purpose than to give the brothers more man pain to further the plot along. However, this can exist while also acknowledging that the way it happened and the subsequent fallout for Jack was also unnecessary and a sign of blatant hypocrisy from Dean, primarily, and Sam. 

And, yes, Jack can be different things at once because, I mean, can’t we all? If Mary can be both the perfect mother and the flawed, independent, distant parent, can’t Jack be the sweet kid who helps his father-figures process their own feelings on fatherhood while also being a lost young-adult forcing them to face their failures? Both characters contain multitudes because, I mean, we all do. 

I can provide articles or posts on Jack’s characterization and popularity along with Mary’s if needed, but for now I think this is a long enough ramble on my thoughts and feelings. I’m happy to discuss more, my messenger is always open for (polite) discussion. Until then, I’m going to leave it at we maybe agree to disagree. 

[katsidhe]

15.17 Final Thoughts (1/2)

.....part one, because I realized I wanted to talk about basically every goddamn scene. I’m dividing this roughly based on Dean-centric and Not Dean-centric thoughts. 

Who is the villain? Fighting against narrative-fate and fighting against order-fate are two similar but subtly and crucially different ideas. Chuck-as-narrative is contrary to the idea of endings in a way that Billie-as-order is not. Both agents of some definition of fate, but Chuck is a force in fundamental opposition to decay. He drags things out, he reassembles his favorite pieces over and over. Death, inasmuch as she is an agent of order, is entropic. Part of order is the chaos of natural unspooling, the inevitable unwinding of a clock.

And there was something fascinating in how s14 laid these pieces out: narrative resurrections as the villain, the peace of natural endings as the goal. To defy the God that kept Sam and Dean living past their natural years is to embrace Death. This episode pulled something like a philosophical reversal in setting up Death—and therefore both types of fate—as something which must still be defied, and I am confused and interested. Essentially, what I viewed in some ways as the fundamental meta-narrative question of s15—coming to terms with an ending when that ending has been delayed at all costs for years and years—is being fought and naysayed by Sam, of all people. I’m still noodling on this one, and I might have more to say later.

What does this even mean, to defy Death? Sam’s (weak, tbh) justification of why Billie as Supreme Ruler would be a bad thing is that her power would specifically undo certain wrinkles in the cosmic order that he and Dean have been party to. But which? How far back would this go? What kind of magics would be undone, would we have, like, a hard reset to season 2? Because that would be Bad for sure. But if Billie would simply be sending a handful of people off to overdue ends, and ensure no more demon/angel shenanigans, I don’t really see the problem with handing her the keys to the kingdom. I guess Sam’s point is that we don’t know, Billie has obviously been less than forthright, and we probably should take a second to think about who we’re giving absolute power to, and why, but. Idk.

[To be involved in the underpinnings of fate is to have some of those powers… can we discuss the Winchesters’ complicity in determining how the universe is structured?]

Part of this also feels like it slots into how Sam has moved on from the concept of martyrdom as a panacea to apocalyptic ills. He and Dean have both tried it over and over, and even when it’s accomplished something good for awhile the universe inevitably unspools further. His frustration with Jack’s willingness to sacrifice himself here reeks with the same frustration Sam had with Dean in 14.12, carrying his  coffin behind the car.

To what extent is Chuck lying about his control over the meta narrative? I’d say, a fair amount. His frustration has, in this season and in this episode, seemed very private and genuine. I think he’s adjusting most of this on the fly.

Jack successfully wins Adam’s rib by identifying that the divine is nested in every rock. Does this make anyone else uneasy at the idea of the plan to obliterate anything divine with a black hole spell? Just me?

Sam infiltrated the library of Death herself, got ambushed unexpectedly by a hostile cosmic power, and quickly discerned its  motives and knowledge while being tortured. And then he pulled the SMOOTHEST LIE of this entire damn show right out of his ass. Sam, we aren’t worthy of you.

Cas’s one contribution this episode was to compliment Sam for looking for a different solution. (I did the same thing, Cas, so I think this makes me as important as you.) But significantly, Cas does this specifically by affirming 1) Sam’s moral compass and 2) Sam’s sanity, and this is a big thing, because those two points are the accusations that Dean (and others) most frequently uses to tell Sam he’s in the wrong.

Something Cas does NOT do is intervene when Dean points a gun at Sam, even though guns don’t hurt him. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯  This could be viewed as a mere issue of staging, but I prefer to slot it into the pattern of Cas finding it difficult to stand up directly to Dean in late seasons.

Jack quietly asks Sam if he’s angry or disappointed. He doesn’t bother asking Dean; he knows. Sam, with candor that Jack utterly deserves from him, tells Jack that he is impressed by Jack’s courage but that he thinks this plan is wrong. Sam doesn’t push harder than this, and he doesn’t say anything to Jack when Jack overhears Dean’s outburst: he just smiles this awful, awkward little smile, the plaster over the ways their relationship has been crumbling and unsteady with the weight of everything that has gone unsaid since 13.23. Jack understands where Sam stands so much less than he understands Dean.

Jack’s got this horrible, twisted air of maturity and gravitas this episode, as he goes to his unnecessary death. He is thoughtful and solemn; he insists he understands and accepts Dean’s condemnation. He is more placid than he was in 14.20, and even more cooperative, because he feels that he’s chosen this path for himself. I found myself comparing his attitude with Sam’s in 5.22: it’s very “I’m the least of any of you”, even though it’s tempered by Jack’s relative fearlessness (he’s going to oblivion, not torment). He’s likewise doing this out of guilt as much or more than necessity, and in service to a larger picture he doesn’t understand.

I really, really want Amara and Jack to bond over their shared status of Superpowerful Cosmic Beings Who Deserve Better.  

Amara wanted nothing more than to believe the best of Dean, and then of Chuck. When Chuck offers her equality and love and partnership, she weeps with how much she wants to believe him. Amara’s acceptance of Chuck, and Sam’s acceptance of Dean are both chilling versions of “unity”, when they have both spent so long sidelined and subordinated by their brothers.

We are in endgame, and this is the first episode that made me feel it. I’m gonna write more about this in Part Dos, but this episode felt like a SPN thesis.  

part two, dean boogaloo, coming tomorrow

[soysaucecas]

someone please talk to me about meanstiel and jack like i think meg is a terrible influence but is a little fond of the little guy even if she’s working through her own feelings about him being lucifer’s son (mentally flip-flopping between worship and derision until she gets to know jack better) and at least tries to follow a “what not to do” list for cas’s sake at least, and i think seeing a demon who does things jack deems as “good” but just out of like. dedication to a cause and love for cas rather than some kind of natural moral compass WOULD rewire jack’s brain (esp during his soulless stage) in a way that could be positive OR negative depending on the situation (though since jack takes a lot of cues from dean he might just try to ignore meg entirely) but also it’s very possible none of this comes to fruition because every time meg comes over sam (who also like personally Does Not Want To See Her for 1000% justified reasons) just takes jack away for a few hours

[lol-jackles]

I saw a post saying that Dean is the “comic book hero”, Cass is the sidekick but Sam is the “story” that Sam is the reason everything happens. I kinda agree with it but wanted to know your thoughts on it, if you don’t mind of course :)

I kind of don’t agree, it sounds like the OP is trying to force-fit Castiel into the Sam & Dean team, or explain how Cas fits into Team Free Will as an equal member.

First, Cas is not a sidekick.  He’s a comic relief plot device who shows up 1/3 of the episodes.  If you ever seen Xena: Warrior Princess, the Cas-equivalent is Joxer who appeared in 42 episodes out of 135 total episodes, see, 1/3.

Joxer is always messing up and taking credit for some of Xena’s heroics, which pisses off fans to this day, but not the general fans because they understand  he’s just an useful idiot who made things happen so that Xena can be the hero.  LotRs Merry seems to mess up a lot and it led to Gandalf’s death and breaking up the fellowship, but these things has to happen in order for Gandalf to be reborn and for Aragorn to lead men to victory.

Joxer lied to his son about his “heroic” past and confessed they were all lies before his death.  There is a Cas centric episode coming up and it looks like he spends most of the time with Jack, his fake-son and maybe like Joxer, Cas confess the truth to Jack before he dies..

Dean is a “comic book hero” in the sidekick Samwise/Nightwing category. Sidekicks doubles as a comic relief on occasion.  Even the solemn Spock serves as the comic relief on Star Trek to contast Kirk’s emotional decision making process.  No matter how popular sidekicks are, they rarely get their own spin-off.  Sure everybody loves Spock but he’s never going to lead his own Star Trek show.  

There are plenty of people who believes sidekicks are the real heros, such as saying Samwise is the real hero of LotR.  I think the arguement is moot because sidekicks are already heroes in their own right.

As much as I am fond of Joxer, Castiel, and Merry, they don’t scream “hero”, you have to squint and spend time thinking of how they fit into the hero catagory.

The one thing the OP got right is “Sam is the ‘story’ that Sam is the reason everything happens” (although I suspect the OP was trying to cast Sam in Merry’s role).  Sam Winchester is the lead protagonist and therefore is almost always the person whom the story is about.  Sam is the comic book hero in the Superman (optimism), Batman (justice), and Wonder Woman (compassion) category.   He has a strong moral code, including a willingness to risk one’s own safety in the service of good without expectation of reward.

One of the main comic superhero trait that doesn’t get talked much about is instilling fear.  Batman inspires fear in the criminals he hunts in Gotham.  If your OP’s view of comic book superheroes is the symbol of fear, then Dean Winchester would represent that aspect better than “puppy-eyed Sam”.  Dean tells monsters that they should be afraid of him and his brother, and most smart ones are.  Others have a healthy respect for Sam, but seem not to have adequate fear of Sam, as seen with the demon Kip who tried to bargain with Sam to be the new king of Hell.

.

Castiel does not inspire optimism, justice, compassion, or fear, at least not consistently that would have taken hold.  Therefore, Cas is not a sidekick in any shape or form.

[robotpals]

okay but what are YOUR top 5 spn characters/eps. the people demand answers

SCREAM. ellie.

characters: 5. kevin 🥺 4. gabriel LOLLL 3. dean 2. charlie! 1. CROWLEYYYY. i hate how PREDICTABLE I AM! but really theres nothing I love more than characters who are, like, evil but good and have their own moral compass thats way worse than the protagonists’ but better than the actual antagonists’. ALSO his terrible relationships with all the main characters: him and dean being pals, him and kevin being arch-enemies, him and cas being snippy w each other, etc. crowley has the range!

eps: 5. the one with the intro of death when he eats pizza in chicago!!! lives in my mind rent free 4. just. all the gabriel episodes LOL 3. that episode in season 7 that introduces charlie! shes so amazing (and as ive said before season 7 is my fav--my lack of taste is astounding). 2. I just watched this episode so its probably just fresh in my mind and not actually that good but 9x11--crowley and dean team up! cas and sam team up! intro of cain! cain+dean parallels! ugh so good 1. maybe this is a boring answer but it really is the best episode: swan song 🤧

[bluephoenixdruidicprincess]

Supernatural 15x16, Drag Me Away (From You) -- Overall Thoughts

I can’t believe we’re this late in the game and I’m still doing overall thoughts posts on this show instead of full-fledged reviews. I should be full swing reviewing and analyzing every detail, making predictions on what the endgame is going to entail...but I just can’t. This show just has not been giving me anything to really latch onto, it’s not giving me material I want to review and write meta about. The Final Episodes are really just episodes that are just kind of there. A couple of nice things sprinkled throughout but ultimately, not really anything that leaves much of a lasting impression on me. Like, why is this show that is so important to me, why are my SPN posts starting to sound more and more like my Shadowhunters posts (a show I did not enjoy and was very happy was cancelled)? Why am I getting so apathetic towards this show? And why is it that with every episode I’m just getting more and more pissed off at Dean? We’re in The Final Episodes; he should be getting better, not worse. 

But lets get on with this shall we? As always, I’m never too sure how spoilery I’m going to get when I write these posts so just a word of caution. Probably going to be spoilers. If you have plans to watch the episode yet and don’t want to be spoiled, probably skip this. 

Now, this episode was nice on the appreciation aspect that we get to see young Sam and Dean again possibly for the last time so I was happy we at least got that (although the moment was nearly ruined with young Dean’s whole “you’re not going to college because you’re too dumb” thing, Dean’s emotional manipulation and abuse started real early). It was still nice to see them regardless of how uninspired the writing might have been for this episode. Sorry Meghan, for me, this episode was not your best work. This episode was just a typical MotW episode and when the overall arching plot mythos is bad or boring as it kinda has been this season, I normally enjoy MotW episodes. But the material in this episode just lacked charm and I really didn’t care about anything that was happening. And then we had this real kind of cringey line at the end where the damsel tells Dean it’s not good to lie but the episode really wasn’t doing a whole lot to hammer that theme in. There were conversations with Young Dean not admitting that he was scared but honestly if I was a kid and looking at this self-proclaimed monster hunter, I don’t think I’d feel all that great if he revealed to me he was scared. And there was the part about Dean lying about the nest of dead children and again, I understand that kind of lie. He was a kid himself, with other kids and his kid brother. Of course he wouldn’t want to tell these kids about a nest of dead children. So the whole theme this episode was attempting to hammer in about lying really kind of misses its mark. If the damsel hadn’t had that super cringey line at the end, I would’ve thought the theme was telling white lies is okay to protect the ones you care about which would then propel Dean to continue to not tell Sam the truth about Jack Da Bomb. But instead, we get this real half-hearted attempt to tell us that lying is bad and just causes problems later which I mean really, this show has already hammered to death for the past 15 seasons. We really didn’t need to hit it again, Dean should really know better at this point.

But moving on, lets talk about another thing, lets talk about why is it that Cas continuously tells Dean he’s leaving and then leaves without a word to Sam? I’m sure the Destiel shippers out there will proclaim this is because in Cas’s eyes, Dean is the most important and Sam is just an afterthought and doesn’t really matter. But as a multi shipper, and someone who’s pretty big into Sastiel these days, my thought is that Cas doesn’t tell Sam when he’s leaving because he knows Sam will try to stop him. Now why did he trust Dean to tell Sam about Jack? Honestly, I just don’t think Cas realizes that Dean is not to be trusted when it comes to things like this. I think Cas told Dean this in a hope that just like with him, it stirred feelings of guilt within him about not being there for Jack but of course had the opposite affect Dean because Dean as a mentioned in previous posts is very much still a child and right now only sees his need for revenge. It’s not necessarily so much revenge against Jack, Dean has more re-directed his revenge to what he believes is the real cause of his pain which is Chuck and to a certain extent Amara. But he can’t be concerned about Jack because again, he has a child’s approach to things. He has tunnel vision when it comes to things he wants. He sees this thing he wants, he sees the most direct path to get it, so that’s the direction he’s going to walk in. He doesn’t care to look both ways before he crosses the street, he doesn’t care that the cars swerving to avoid him are instead about to hit telephone pulls and catch fire. All he sees is what he wants and if he can get to that point before he gets hurt, then that’s what he’s going to do. (Huh, maybe I am in the mood to meta after all, that was quite the metaphor I used). But the point is because Cas is an adjusted adult being he hears that Jack is going to die and he thinks, we need a plan C and expects Dean to feel the same way and tell Sam for him. Cas knows Sam upon hearing that with Plan B, Jack is going to die and Cas is now searching for a Plan C that could involve sacrificing himself instead, Sam would not be okay with either option. But because Cas unfortunately still has his Dean blinders on, he can’t see that even if Dean feels a smidge of potential guilt towards what’s going to happen to Jack, Dean is willing to sacrifice Jack in order to get what he wants. Unfortunate but a lovely Sastiel moment nonetheless. 

And then of course, we have the fight in the car with Sam and Dean. Sam understandably is very upset with Dean for keeping this from him. And Dean is yelliing at Sam that Sam would have hated it, he wasn’t on board with using Jack, he wasn’t on board with Amara and I just think that its funny. Because I remember a lot of meta writers within the Destiel fandom kind of talking about how Sam supposedly sympathizes while Dean empathizes and I’m just looking at this scene and thinking, “ok, how on earth does this correlate to that sentiment.” We’re not getting a whole lot of empathy from Dean here and instead Sam, as always, is being the moral compass here. But anyway, Dean is shouting how they don’t have a choice, this is their only option, blah, blah.blah. And I’m just like, “Dean, you do have a choice, but you’re just a child mentally and refuse to look at alternatives because killing Chuck and Amara ala Jack Da Bomb is the most direct path to what you want. And I’m just really happy the that Sam got to the point where he raised his voice at Dean. He didn’t simper down, he wanted Dean to hear that he was not okay with this and the scene just ended with Sam just telling Dean to not speak, not try to make Sam feel better or make any half-assed apologies to Sam, Sam tells Dean to “just drive”. And this is kind of nice character growth for Sam. Because with how Sam was in this scene, I half expected him to tell Dean to stop the car and let him out and he was going to leave. But, I also think unlike what Sam did in season 1, he’s now mature enough to understand that even if he leaves, it’s not going to change anything. He’s not good with what’s planned for Jack’s future but he knows that if he stays, he can maybe find a way to stop it from happening, which he might not be able to do if he had simply left. So character growth there. 

But anyway, thanks for listening to me ramble. I apparently had a lot more to say than I thought I did. But like I said, another episode in the books that I really don’t feel inclined to watch again. It’s another episode that’s there, it fills up space but really doesn’t mean a whole lot to me in the grand scheme of things and really feels kind of disjointed. This whole season has kind of been feeling that way. It’s like they only had a couple of ideas for the overall plot arch of this season and now they’re just stuck with filling up the empty space. Although, it was nice that Billy called the boys and essentially the writers out on them doing a MotW episode this late in the game when they should be focusing on other things. 

[writtingsofspn]

You’re Not Gonna Die

Summary: Dean comes to rescue you after you’ve been captured.

Pairing: Dean x Reader

Warnings: Hell lot of swearing but you know that’s normal

A/N: Been sitting on this story for about a week and just decided to post it. Let me know what you think I love love love feedback!

Another punch was thrown at your jaw sending your head snapping back. You bit your tongue to keep from crying out, an action that had the demon laughing, loving the control he held over you. Slowly, he brushed his bloody knuckles (yours or his you honestly weren’t sure of at this point) on his shirt as he paced back and forth before you.

“Just tell me where Dean Winchester is, and this can all end”

“I told you I don’t know where he is” You spit, your tongue brushing over a tooth you were pretty sure didn’t wiggle before.

The demon just laughed again, punching you in the stomach making you double over. “I really don’t know why you’re protecting him”

Now it was your turn to laugh, leaning your head back as you started to loose the energy to keep it upright. “Believe me the last person I would want to protect is Dean fucking Winchester”

“We both know that isn’t true” He squinted his eyes at you, stalking menacingly around the room. “cute defense mechanism though”

“defense mech-“ You were cut off by a squeak in the floorboard. Both you and the demon snapping your attention to the doorway where it came from.

“Speak of the devil” he grinned, sending you a wink before walking over to the door and kicking it open. Grabbing a defenseless Dean Winchester by the shirt and throwing him onto the floor before you.

Dean quickly spun around, avoiding all eye contract with you, to face the demon. He was no doubt pissed that you had gotten captured, pissed that you had made him come and get you or some shit. No doubt whatever it was it was entirely your fault.

“Dean so nice of you to drop in” The demon grinned down at him.

“I followed all of your instructions now let her go” Dean growled, scrambling to his feet.

“Really?” The demon asked, raising his eyebrow “no backup? No weapons?”

“You can check if you want” He answered, holding open his outer layer to show that he was in fact weaponless.

“Alright” The demon nodded hesitantly “tie yourself to that chair, then I’ll let her go”

Dean didn’t hesitate, avoiding your eye contact again before tying his legs and arm to the chair. Letting the demon do the last one. “There all tied up now hold up you end of the deal”

The demon just laughed, walking back over to you “I hold all of the cards here. You’re both weaponless, backup-less, and tied to a chair. Next time seal it with a kiss”

Dean practically jumped out of his seat, trying to lunge at the thing as it ran its fingers through your hair teasingly.

“I think I’ll have some fun with this” He grinned, walking over to the table and grabbing a large knife off of it, waving it in the air in front of you.

“You touch her and I swear-“

“Can’t exactly do much tied to that chair can you?”

The two were interrupted by a knock at the door, a young man poking his head tentatively through the gap. “Sir we have a situation”

The demon made a show of rolling his eyes and sighing “that needs to be dealt with now?”

“Unfortunately”

Another sigh and he spun on his heel to face you, sending a small wink and a quiet “hold this” before thrusting the knife deep into your thigh.

You yelped as you looked down at it, more out of shock then anything, earning another shit-eating grin from the demon as he made his way back across the room and through the door.

Dean was jumping in your direction immediately, the knots he had tied himself coming apart easily allowing him to escape quickly and help you with your own. Not that you were of much help, spending a bit too long just staring at the knife handle sticking out of your thigh.

Dean put his arm under your shoulders, lifting you easily out of the chair and letting you lean heavily on him. “Whatever you do don’t take the knife out” He whisper-yelled at you.

“Yeah no shit” You grimaced back, wasn’t your first time being stabbed, probably wouldn’t be your last you didn’t need him babying you.

Dean just rolled his eyes and led you out of the room, the two of you doing your best to remain as quiet as possible.

A man came out from around the corner without either of you hearing him, being too preoccupied with your stab wound and breathing. He looked between the two of you for a second in shock before jumping into action, getting ready to charge. You looked over at Dean, supporting most of your weight and totally weaponless. There was no way this was going to end well. So without a second thought you pulled the knife from your thigh and threw it at him. The knife effectively landing between his eyes.

Dean wasted no time in lunging for the door to his right, pulling it open and dragging to two of you inside, shutting the door as quietly as possible behind you.

The two of you sat in silence for a few moments, waiting to see if any more footsteps would appear, before Dean decided to break it.

“You’re bleeding” He whispered, shrugging off his outer layer “you’re always fucking bleeding”

“Sorry next time you get tortured since you’re so much better at it” You shot back, lifting your leg just enough for him to place the jacket beneath it.

“I would at least know not to take the knife out” He muttered, starting to wrap it around your thigh.

“next time I’ll let him catch us” You rolled your eyes, grimacing as he tied it just above the wound, pulling on the sleeves a bit more than necessary. You could have sworn you saw the corners of his mouth tip up at that making you growl beneath your breath. “Whatever lets just get moving”

“You’ve been stabbed in the leg and are heavily bleeding we’re not going anywhere.” He growled “we’ll just wait for Sam and Cas”

“You really did just walk in here with no backup and no weapons” You shook your head, adjusting yourself to sit comfortably against the wall.

“It’s what he told me to do” He shrugged, locking his eyes on the ground.

“Right because demons are known for their strict moral compass”

“I was trying to save your life”

That shut you up immediately. He was right, he came to save you and you’ve done nothing but bitch and moan. And sure it wasn’t the best thought out plan but he was still here. That had to be good for something.

“How far out do you think Sam and Cas are?” You changed your tone, making it much softer and quieter than before.

Dean just shrugged “they wouldn’t exactly just let me come here so-“

“so you snuck out they have no clue you’re even gone” You finished for him with a sigh, resting your head back against the wall.

Dean just nodded, looking back over at you. The effects of blood loss were starting to sink in. Your limbs were starting to grow cold and exhaustion was starting to take over. You laid back against the wall, letting your eyes fall shut only to have Dean kick your foot.

“Keep them open sweetheart”

And while normally you would have objected to the nickname you just couldn’t bring yourself to do so, all energy to do anything leaving you quickly. Instead you just obeyed, snapping your eyes open but was ultimately unable to keep your head kept bobbing.

“Here” Dean sighed softly, making his way over to you and sitting down, leaning you against him so that your head rested on his shoulder.

Once again you didn’t object, just leaning your head against him and staring a back down at your leg wound. Deans jacket and most of your pants in that area were stained a deep red.

“Dean?” You asked hesitantly “am I going to die?”

“You’re not going to die” His words were quick and harsh, forcing you into an uncomfortable silence that Dean seemed to sense, quickly correcting himself “you’re just being overdramatic you’re going to be fine”

Feeling a bit better you hummed back at him, still staring at the wound “I never thought I’d be afraid of dying” You continued softly “Afterall I face it nearly everyday. But just sitting here in a closet. Slowly bleeding out.…Dean I’m scared”

Dean was quiet for a few moments, before he hesitantly grabbed your hand, giving it a small squeeze. “How about this. When we get back and I stitch you up I’ll gather all of your blankets and pillows, pop some popcorn and rent a movie”

You chuckled softly, giving his hand a squeeze back “Dean Winchester are you asking me out on a date?”

He paused for a few seconds, “and if I were?”

You chuckled again, unable to fight a small smile off of your face “I’d be alright with that”

Dean’s expression mirrored yours as he pressed a quick kiss to the top of your head “good”

You shuffled further into his shoulder comfortably, letting your eyes finally shut.

“You know what that means right?” He asked, giving his shoulder a small shake knowing that you had tried to fall asleep again.

“hmm?” You hummed lazily, refusing to open your eyes.

“Now you have to live. Cause we have a date and I never get stood up”

You laughed at him “is that so?”

“It is” He nodded. “Now keep your eyes open and stay with me”

“Just a short nap” You mumbled, nuzzling into the crook of his neck.

“No” He objected shaking you slightly “Sam and Cas can’t be much longer”

“short nap-“ You repeated, your voice falling off at the end of it as you drifted off to sleep.

Dean listened as your breathing slowed even further, reaching out for your wrist to check your pulse, silently urging Sam and Cas to hurry up.